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Caverns of the Snow Witch (book)
:For other uses of '''Caverns of the Snow Witch', see'' Caverns of the Snow Witch Caverns of the Snow Witch single-player role-playing gamebook, written by Ian Livingstone, illustrated by Gary Ward and Edward Crosby and originally published in 1984 by Puffin Books. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2003, and again in 2019 by Scholastic Books with new illustrations by Robert M. Ball. It forms part of Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone's Fighting Fantasy series. It is the 9th in the series in the original Puffin series (ISBN 0-14-031830-5), 10th in the Wizard "Series 1" (ISBN 1-84046-432-1) and 13th in the Scholastic series (ISBN 1-407188-47-8). Creation A short version of the adventure, made up of 190 references, was first published in Warlock magazine. - pg.22 The "Fighting Fantasy News" section of the same issue however made it clear that the adventure (and House of Hell which followed it in the next issue) was always planned as a gamebook and a shortened and modified version for use in the magazine was created: - pg.4}} Background - Back Cover ("Dragon" Edition)}} The book is split into three distinct parts. In the first part, the reader is hired to kill a Yeti that has been disrupting trade routes in the Icefinger Mountains of Allansia. After killing the Yeti, the player finds a dying trapper who tells him of the great riches to be found in the caverns of the Snow Witch, an Evil sorceress who dwells in the mountains. The player sets off to investigate the caverns, meeting up with two other adventurers along the way: Redswift the Elf and Stubb the Dwarf. The three companions infiltrate the caverns, fight their way through guards and monsters, and kill the Snow Witch. In the second part, the three of them must escape the caverns while being pursued by the Snow Witch's minions. Along the way they encounter many traps, several guards and even the spirit of the late Snow Witch herself. In the third part, the three escape from the caverns and return to civilised, temperate parts of Allansia, only to find that the Snow Witch has cast a Death Spell on them, which they will slowly succumb to. After Redswift perishes, the reader must seek out Pen Ty Kora, a reclusive healing wizard, to cure him of the spell, while his stamina score gradually dwindles away. If the reader has certain items from the Snow Witch's cavern, and can pass a series of ordeals, he will be cured of the spell and successfully complete the gamebook. Fighting Monsters/Equipment and Potions/Hints on Play The book in general follows the original rules set down in ''The Warlock of Firetop Mountain (see Game System). Equipment List - pg.16 *Sword *Leather Armour *Backpack *10 Provisions *Choice of one of three Potions (see Game System for generic fantasy setting choices) Cover and Illustrations Covers The original cover of the book was designed and illustrated by Les Edwards. When the book was republished by Wizard a new cover was designed and illustrated by Les Edwards. There were some changes made between his initial sketch and the finished version: In 2019 a new cover was created by Robert M. Ball for the Scholastic Books edition. Illustrations Puffin/Wizard Edition The interior illustrations were by Gary Ward and Edward Crosby. There were 32 full page illustrations and 5 minor repeated illustrations scattered throughout the text. The paragraphs with a full page illustration were: Background, 13, 26, 37, 50, 59, 75, 83, 88, 96, 106, 115, 125, 154, 168, 180, 190, 198, 212, 223, 235, 254, 262, 278, 288, 297, 319, 328, 348, 365, 374 and 398. Scholastic Edition New interior art by Robert M. Ball was used in the Scholastic 2019 reprint. There were 19 full page illustrations and 5 minor repeated illustrations scattered throughout the text. The paragraphs with a full page illustration were: 26, 37, 59, 83, 96, 106, 125, 154, 180, 190, 212, 223, 235, 288, 297, 328, 348, 365, and 398. The full-page illustrations in the book were accompanied with a caption giving a short extract from the text. Intertextual References Sequels Whilst ''Caverns of the Snow Witch was originally the ninth book in the series, it is the chronological prequel of The Forest of Doom, the third book. The quest for King Gillibran Ironhelm III's war hammer, which is the basis of the plot of The Forest of Doom, begins in this book. - 400 Also - depending on reader interpretation - Temple of Terror forms a further sequel. Other Media Ornament *Clarecraft made a figurine of Shareella called The Snow Witch in 1992 (re-released in 2004), as part of an officially licensed series of Fighting Fantasy Ornaments.25th Anniversary Edition of - pg.240 d20 System Conversion There is a D20 System conversion by Myriador released in ????. Main Characters YOU: Hero of Caverns of the Snow Witch *Ash - Wood Elf *Big Jim Sun - Merchant *Bigleg - Dwarf *King Gillibran Ironhelm III - Dwarf *Minstrel *Morri Silverheart - Dwarf/Ironsmith *Pen Ty Kora The Healer - Wizard *Redswift - Wood Elf *Shareella - Sorceress/The Snow Witch/Vampire *Stubb - Dwarf Locations *Crystal Caves *Darkwood Forest *Deathtrap Dungeon *Fang *Firetop Mountain *Icefinger Mountains *Moonstone Hills *Pagan Plains *Red River *River Kok *Stonebridge Encounters *Banshee *Barbarians *Bird-Man *Brain Slayer *Cave-Man *Centaur *Crystal Warrior *Death Hawk *Dwarf *Elf *Flesh Grub *Frost Giant *Goblins *Hill Trolls *Hobgoblin *Humans - Axeman/Knight *Ice Demon *Mammoth *Man-Orc *Mountain Elf *Neanderthal *Night Stalker *Ninja *Sentinel *Snow Wolves *Werewolf *White Dragon *Wild Hill Man *Yeti *Zombie - Dwarf/Elf/Regular Further Notes *24 instant failures, 1 victory, plus death by Stamina loss or bad luck. Errors *When you meet the Crystal Warrior the player is asked if they possess a warhammer. If they do, they must proceed to battle the creature. If they don't, they are sent to another section and asked whether they have a Genie friend who can help them to avoid the fight, which means avoiding any loss of time or stamina. So bringing the warhammer along is actually a penalty. *In an error not present in the original printing (or the Wizard re-release), with the seventh impression of the book (the first Golden Dragon printing in 1987), (154) links to (185) if you haven't drunk the dragon's egg concoction. However, it this should link to (333). This error is still present by the twelfth impression. *The map in the Scholastic edition mis-spells Salamonis as "Salamons". Dedication Puffin Edition For Dave, John, Maurice, Rob, Skye and Steve of the Lads' Night Inn - pg.5 Wizard Edition For Hannah - pg.5 Scholastic Edition none See Also *''Casket of Souls'' *''Dicing with Dragons'' Reviews External Links *Character Sheet - Retrieved 2019-10-26 *[http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series.php?id=11 Fighting Fantasy at Gamebooks.org] - Retrieved 2019-10-26 *[http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series.php?id=12 Fighting Fantasy (Wizard Series 1) at Gamebooks.org] - Retrieved 2019-10-26 *[http://www.gamebooks.org/show_item.php?id=46 Caverns of the Snow Witch at Gamebooks.org] - Retrieved 2019-10-26 *[http://web.archive.org/web/20051127132124/www.fightingfantasy.com/ffb9.htm Caverns of the Snow Witch at the Internet Archive record of the old] Fightingfantasy.com - Retrieved 2019-10-26 References Category:1984 books Category:Fighting Fantasy Original Series Category:Fighting Fantasy Wizard Series Category:Fighting Fantasy Scholastic Series